Weymouth Classic 2009
Irish beach volleyball players were abroad again this July for the annual Weymouth Classic, the biggest and brightest tournament of the English beach volleyball tour. Three teams hit the beaches: Megan Burgdorf and Katrina Polaski, Lina Klimkeviciute and Miriam Gormally and for the first time a men’s team, Slawomir Wrzesniek and Marek Majtyka.
The men kicked off play on Friday with standards at an all-time high. Slawomir and Marek started out strong in what turned into a vicious scrap against a very strong Scottish team. The guys hit hard and played smart, but the Scots defence was almost impossible to break and Slawomir and Marek ended up narrowly loosing 25-22. They then comfortably won their next two games, putting them into centre court for the final play off into the AAA competition. There they had moments of pure magic, but after a long day of travel and play they fell behind early in the set and couldn’t quite get the momentum to close the gap. They would finish Friday looking forward to the AA series playoffs on Saturday.
The two women’s teams, unknown to the tour, started out first thing Saturday morning, both getting early draws. Lina and Miriam won the first game fairly comfortably, building up their confidence. Megan and Katrina on the other hand got off to a rough start, dropping early points. Despite fighting back,  they ended up narrowly losing 15-13, 15-13.
Surviving the first round meant that Lina and Miriam’s next opponents were top-seeded Denise Austin and Mel Coutts. It was a case of students meeting their master. Denise has hosted training camps for Irish beach volleyball players twice this year, once in Cardiff and once in Dublin. Fearing the worst and expecting to be annihilated, the girls went in with an all-or-nothing attitude.
Initially it paid off. Lina started serving and shot the team into a 3-0 lead. Denise and Mel fought back to challenge Miriam and Lina point for point. The Weymouth favourites then launched ahead and won 15-10. The second set was comparable leaving Miriam and Lina with their first loss of the day.
 Unfortunately the next draw had the two Irish womens' teams playing each other in a knock-out match. Nail biting stuff! It was a tight and tough game. Both teams were well aware of each other’s weaknesses and capitalised on them. Lina and Miriam went into an early lead in the first set, but Megan and Katrina came back to within two points. It then played point for point after that, but Lina and Miriam's early lead gave them valuable space and they made it first past the 15-point post.
The second set started the other way around, with Megan and Katrina taking an early lead, looking like they were going to win that one. But Lina and Miriam pulled back level and again scraped a win. An unfortunate knock-out left Megan and Katrina to rally behind Miriam and Lina scouting out the opposition and giving valuable advice for future games.
 Miriam and Lina's next game was surprisingly easy, the following team put up very little opposition. However the next game was of a different matter, against the AA-rated, number-4-seeded team of the tournament. The opposition went into a very easy lead and were settling back into a comfortable win when the tide turned. Lina pulled a new force out of the bag and smashed a killer ball, unlike anything she had hit in beach before, (if only we had it on video) straight down between the two girls. The mood changed. They looked shaken and the Irish gained confidence. The rest of the set was more even, but they weren’t able to make up for the early losses.
The AA team may have won the first set, but both teams went in as equals for the second set. Katrina and Megan who had been watching told the girls to play longer corner shots which worked a treat. Miriam and Lina capitalised, winning the second set. The Brits weren't happy. Their frustration allowed the Irish to beat them in the third set to earn a place in the quarter finals.
Meanwhile, Slawomir and Marek had started their AA competition, this time matches were best of three sets. They got off to a good start winning their first game 2-0, but then lost their second game. They were then drawn against the top team of the league and that was their match of the day. They fought hard, lost the first set, but won the second and they were looking strong in the 3rd set. But the other team had the edge and our guys narrowly lost.
The women’s quarter finals match looked like a repeat of the previous game. The AA team won the first set quite comfortably. But again, the Irish raised their game and won the second set. The third set demonstrated the potential for the unranked Irish to compete in the finals, however, the Irish fell 13-15.
The Irish teams gained experience from playing at this new level against unknown teams. Even watching the matches seemed to help improve our game and we all felt motivated to do what it takes to continue to bring our own games up a notch, including possible future trips to training camps abroad. Irish beach volleyball should take comfort from the fact that with the right training and support we can compete with the best. Thanks again to the VAI and beach commission for helping to make it possible. We will make next year the year we really go for Weymouth!
From Back Row Left to Right: Lina Klimkeviciute, Miriam Gormally, Megan Burgdorf, Katrina Polaski, Marek Majtyka & Slawomir Wrzesniek
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